A man accused of plotting a terrorist attack on RAF Menwith Hill near Harrogate did so because it was a designated Islamic State target, a court heard.

Mohammad Farooq, 28, is accused of preparing pressure cooker bomb attacks on the US spy and radar base and a Leeds hospital.

In the second week of the trial at Sheffield Crown Court yesterday, the jury heard that Farooq had downloaded material from extremist Jihadi groups and online guides on how to make a bomb.

Prosecutor Jonathan Sandiford said Farooq’s “Plan A” was to target Menwith Hill and when that didn’t come off, he turned his attention to “Plan B” – St James’s University Hospital, which he saw as a “softer and less-well-protected target”.

Mr Sandiford added:

“By January 2023, we say that the defendant had become a self-radicalised lone-wolf terrorist who had made preparations to commit a murderous terrorist attack in Yorkshire.”

Analysis of Farooq’s iPhone and his movements in his Seat Ibiza showed he had targeted RAF Menwith Hill after downloading extremist material on TikTok and lectures by a radical Islamist preacher.

He also obtained bomb-making instructions from Inspire, an Al Qaeda magazine which urged followers to carry out lone-wolf terror attacks against The West”, particularly in the US and the UK.

Mr Sandiford told the court:

“The reason (for targeting) RAF Menwith Hill (was because it) had been designated as a target for lone-wolf terrorists by Islamic State because it was believed that the base had had been used to co-ordinate drone strikes against terrorists in Syria and Iraq.”

Using cell-site technology, police discovered Farooq had made at least two visits to the RAF base between January 10 and the day of his arrest on January 20.

Farooq, from Leeds, later admitted he had an explosive device with him when he went to the air base but claimed he had just gone there “for a drive”.

He also obtained “instructions for the preparation and manufacture…of five deadly toxins as nerve agents”, namely Ricin, Sarin, VX, Tabun and Tetrodoxin.

Talked down by patient

Farooq took to the witness stand yesterday.

The court heard that the clinical support worker at St James’s University Hospital wandered into the hospital grounds carrying a homemade bomb, two knives and a 9mm PAK semi-automatic pistol.

Mr Sandiford said Farooq was standing at the entrance to the Gledhow Wing, waiting for the “right time” when that section of the hospital would be “full of nurses”before detonating his pressure-cooker-style bomb in the early hours of January 20.

However, by sheer chance, Nathan Newby, a patient, happened to be having a cigarette outside the main entrance at the time Farooq was allegedly about to execute his deadly plot.

Mr Newby said he was “good at reading body language”and thought “something was amiss” with Farooq.

He said that Farooq, allegedly inspired by Al Qaeda and Islamic State, was “right quiet at first” but then “just came out with it”, telling him he had a bomb and planned to detonate it inside the hospital.

Read more:

• ‘Lone wolf terrorist’ plotted to blow up RAF Menwith Hill, trial hears
• Do these two things to save lives, urges Harrogate teenage cancer patient

The quick-thinking patient kept a calm head and persuaded Farooq to walk with him to a bench away from the main hospital buildings. There they sat and chatted amiably until Farooq started “rocking back and forwards” and told him he had a bomb.

Mr Newby managed to calm Farooq, who had placed a bag with the bomb and explosives inside on the ground next to the bench, and “talk him down”.

Farooq handed him his phone and said: “Please dial 999. I’ve changed my mind.”

The “shocked” patient called police at about 4.20am and in a remarkably calm exchange with the call-taker, explained the situation to her, saying he was with a man who “seemed a good lad, a nice guy”, but who was carrying a homemade bomb and “wanted to set it off”.

Mr Newby said he asked Farooq what was inside his coat, whereupon Farooq unzipped his garment and pulled out a pistol. He tried to hand it to the patient who told him to put it on the bench, which he did.

‘Wanted to get back at nurses’

Under cross-examination from Farooq’s barrister Gul Nawaz Hussain KC, Mr Newby said he first approached Farooq because he looked distressed, “like he’d had some really bad news”, and wanted to cheer him up.

Farooq told Mr Newby he was “feeling down” and that he wanted “to get them back”.

It was explained that by “them”, Farooq meant the nurses with whom he worked at the hospital and had a beef.

Farooq told Mr Newby he “felt like they didn’t want him anymore” and that he “felt like he’d lost everything and just wanted to get them back”.

The witness said Farooq was “really relaxed” and it was “just like a normal conversation, like he was buying some trainers”.

Farooq then started “looking down at his bag” and put his hands in his pockets, “looking agitated” and rocking back and forth.

When Mr Newby asked Farooq what was inside his bag, he replied: “There’s a bomb.”

Farooq told him his plan was to “walk through the main doors past the lifts, straight to the canteen (in the Gledhow Wing)” and “wait for all (of) them to come back in” and detonate the bomb.

Mr Newby said he had been speaking to Farooq “for hours” before the alleged terrorist’s arrest.

Mr Sandiford said:

“The defendant was in possession of a viable improvised explosive device assembled from a pressure cooker and containing 9.9 kilos of low explosive.

“He had with him…two knives, black tape and…a firearm. The Crown’s case is that he had gone to that hospital to commit a terrorist attack (and) seek his own martyrdom by detonating the explosive device and using bladed weapons to kill as many people as possible.”

‘Wanted martyrdom’

Farooq, who had downloaded a map or plan of the hospital, had wanted to “induce a response” from police or get them to shoot him “to give him a martyrdom that he believed would bring him the seven blessings of the martyr and direct entry into Jannah, or Paradise”.

He had parked up outside the hospital and sent a bomb threat from the car park “with the intent of causing an evacuation while he was waiting in his car”. Mr Sandiford added:

“He was waiting to detonate the improvised explosive device and then attack any survivors with the bladed weapons.”

By chance, the bomb threat was sent to a nurse at the hospital who was off duty, watching TV at home, and “didn’t see or act upon the message for over an hour”, so a full evacuation never occurred and Farooq drove away.

He returned a short time later with a new plan of attack which was to carry the weapons, including the homemade bomb, into the Costa Coffee cafe inside the hospital, “wait for a change of shift so that it would be full of nurses, then detonate it, killing as many of them as possible”.

The pressure-cooker bomb, similar to the one used in the Boston Marathon terror attack in 2013, was made safe by a military bomb-disposal team as police began to run checks on Farooq’s movements before the alleged planned attack.

Farooq, of Hetton Road, Roundhay, has already admitted possessing an explosive substance, an improvised explosive device and pyrotechnic fuses in suspicious circumstances.

He has also pleaded guilty to possessing a document likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism and carrying an imitation firearm with criminal intent. However, he denies plotting terrorist acts.

The trial continues.

Are you already thinking of how to reward your employees this Christmas? Why not choose the Harrogate Gift Card?

The Harrogate Gift Card can be spent in over 100 businesses in Harrogate town centre including retail, hospitality and leisure, whilst keeping the spend locked into the local economy.

Complete a corporate bulk order of over £250 and receive 15% discount from November 1 to 15 with the code ‘HGT15’.

A Harrogate equipment rental company has appointed a new chief financial officer.

Beckwith Knowle-based VP has announced that Kieth Winstanley will join its board from January 2024.

Mr Winstanley qualified as a chartered accountant with PwC and recently held senior finance leadership roles at KCOM Group plc and Lookers plc.

Anna Bielby, chief executive of VP, said:

“I am delighted to be welcoming Keith to Vp as CFO and I look forward to working with him again.

“Keith has significant finance experience which will be instrumental in driving Vp forwards.”

Harrogate care company recognised at regional awards.

A Harrogate and Ripon care company has been recognised at an industry award.

Continued Care won two awards at the regional finals of the Great British Care awards, which was held at the Royal Armouries in Leeds.

Staff member Nichola Noble won in the care assessor award category, while Samantha Lathley was highly commended in the frontline leader award.

Both will go to the national finals in 2024.

Samantha Harrison, director at Continued Care, said: 

“Nichola is once again a worthy winner of her award. Well done to Samantha too, and to all our staff who were nominated.

“The most special thing about these awards is that the finalists were all put forward by the people they care for and work with.”

Read more:

• Business Breakfast: Harrogate care provider hires learning development manager
• Business Breakfast: Harrogate consultancy firm hires new associate directors
• Business Breakfast: Harrogate shoe firm celebrates 30 years

A section of Ripon Road near Harrogate has been closed following a serious traffic collision this evening.

An air ambulance and numerous police cars were called to the bridge between New Park roundabout and Killinghall shortly before 6pm.

The incident occurred close to the junction with Knox Mill Lane.

No details have been released but the road is expected to be closed for some time.

The road closure in Killinghall.

Vehicles were forced to turn around and eventually the police closed a section of the A61 from New Park roundabout to the junction with Otley Road in the centre of Killinghall.

We will bring further details when they become available.

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• Emergency services called to person trapped in barbed wire in Harrogate

Further details of the proposed new bike track in Harrogate’s Valley Gardens have been revealed.

North Yorkshire Council is running a six-week consultation on whether to replace the nine-hole pitch and putt course with a pump track.

Pump tracks use bumps and bends in the land to allow cyclists and scooter riders to generate momentum.

The consultation says the “new facility would be approximately 2,000 square metres”.

However, the council has now said the track itself wouldn’t be this size, and much of the pitch and putt course would be returned to grassland.

A council spokesperson said the track, which would cost £2,000, is likely to be similar in size to the one in Wetherby, which is shown below and in the main image. It could be open by April.

A council spokesperson said:

“It is a small beginners track that would be made of compacted hardcore.

“It would be 1 to 1.5 metres wide and will be based in a circular shape.

“The pump track is aimed at beginners to complement the existing skate park that attracts older and more competent children.

“It is not going to cover the whole area of the pitch and putt, only a smaller area where holes one to nine are. The frisbee golf is staying.”

Asked what would happen to the remainder of the pitch and putt area, the spokesperson added:

“The whole pitch and putt course would be closed and the remainder would be returned to normal parkland.”

Karl Battersby, the council’s corporate director for environment, previously said:

“The track proposed would have gentle slopes, curves and bumps, be accessible all year, and replace the existing nine-hole pitch and putt golf course.”

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• New bike track could be in Harrogate’s Valley Gardens by April

A Christian charity that runs training for people recovering from drug and alcohol addiction near Harrogate could offer bedrooms at one of its sites to holiday makers.

Horizon Life Training provides residential training facilities to people who have already been through addiction rehab centres, teaching them life and employment skills.

The charity runs a men’s centre at Kennel Hall Farm in Killinghall and a women’s centre at Bramall House on Skipton Road, which was formerly the Black Bull pub and is close to RAF Menwith Hill.

During the covid pandemic, the centres closed for new intakes, which the charity said has let to a “break in the supply” for suitable applicants for the training.

As a result, all of its activity is now taking place at the Killinghall centre, leaving nine bedrooms and a flat at Bramall House currently unused.

In plans submitted to North Yorkshire Council, the charity said it does not want the building to remain empty so it’s asking the council to approve a temporary change of use application so it could be used for holiday lets.

It also said the move would bring in much-needed income for the charity. It said the move may be necessary for up to two years before it can reopen the centre for recovery training.

Planning documents state that contractors working on the Kex Gill A59 new road scheme could potentially rent rooms at the site.

They add: 

“The charity still bears the sizeable fixed costs of operating the building, placing its own financial continuance at risk.

“This proposal would ensure the use of the building in a constructive manner during a period when it would otherwise be empty. It will provide much needed accommodation for those who will use it and an income to facilitate the upkeep of the building for Horizon Life Training.”

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• Fresh plan to convert pub near Pateley Bridge into a cottage

This year’s Stray Ferret Christmas Appeal is for Dementia Forward in the Harrogate district, kindly sponsored by Vida Healthcare. 

Here’s a message from the Vida Healthcare team.

Vida Healthcare has provided specialist care for adults suffering with dementia since 2014. With over 300 beds across three state-of-the-art Harrogate homes, the team places people’s needs at the forefront of its values and ensures those living with this life-changing condition still have a voice in society.

Losing your memory robs of you of your former life, but Vida Healthcare wants those people to know they still have a purpose.

James Rycroft, managing director at Vida Healthcare, said:

“We’re delighted to be supporting the Stray Ferret Christmas Appeal in aid of Dementia Forward.

“It is such an amazing local charity supporting people living with dementia.

“Our vision aligns with Dementia Forward; dementia is such a widespread national – even global – issue, but Vida and Dementia Forward are focused on improving the lifestyle and well-being of those living with dementia at all stages of that journey.

“We both hold out a helping hand.”

The team designs and develops the homes to offer the highest quality of dementia care. All three homes are rated ‘outstanding’ and Vida provides constant support for those people who need more care than they can give themselves.

It support residents with activities outside of the home including access to local groups and events, meeting family and friends and catering to spiritual needs.

Vida Hall in Starbeck was the first of Vida’s care homes.

Bernadette Mossman, healthcare director at Vida Healthcare, added:

“It’s very close to our hearts to be able to help support Dementia Forward.

“We have the exact same approach and attitudes towards someone living with dementia – we look at the person first.

“People living with dementia can experience such significant loneliness and their families also need someone to hold their hand during their journey to know they’re not alone.

“What Dementia Forward does so well is support people to live well in the community and they do it absolutely beautifully.”

Both Vida Healthcare and Dementia Forward work tirelessly to improve the lives of those living with this progressive condition and support those watching their loved one slip away.

Vida Hall.

Bernadette added:

“Dementia Forward allows that person to stay with their family, be involved in the community and, when or if the time comes that they need additional support, they help them begin that journey too – Vida also plays a part in that.

“Some may need to come here for a period of respite – maybe longer — but want to be there to reach out to that person and say ‘come and see us’ so we can be a part of the decision-making process.

“If we can help in any way to make that journey as easy as possible, then it is our honour to be a part of it.”

Every donation to our campaign will go directly to Dementia Forward, helping us hit our £30,000 target to buy the charity a new minibus and bettering the lives of those living with dementia and the people around them.

Dementia Forward’s current bus is old and tired and urgently needs to be replaced. The charity would seriously struggle to afford a new one, which is why they need your help to keep this vital service going. Without it, many people living with dementia wouldn’t be able to access the help and support they need. 

Click here to donate whatever you can – you never know when you, a family member or a friend may be in need of Dementia Forward or Vida Healthcare’s help too.

Let’s not forget those who need our help this Christmas.

Police have issued a CCTV image of a man they wish to speak to after a serious assault in Harrogate which left one man with a fractured skull.

The incident happened on Montpellier Hill at around 11.40pm on Monday, October 23.

Two men were assaulted after being kicked in the head and stamped on.

The assault left one of the victims with a fractured skull and requiring long term medical treatment.

Two men in their twenties have been arrested in connection with this incident. Both have been released on police bail while enquiries continue.

A North Yorkshire Police statement added:

“Officers are requested the assistance of the public to identify the man in the image, as they believe he may have important information which would assist their investigation.

“Anyone who recognises the man, or who witnessed the incident is asked to contact North Yorkshire Police on 101 and speak to the Force Control Room. Please quote reference 12230201814.

“Crimestoppers can be contact anonymously on 0800 555 111.”

Read more:

• Police seek woman after dog attacks man in Harrogate town centre
• ‘Lone wolf terrorist’ plotted to blow up RAF Menwith Hill, trial hears
• Harrogate district man arrested over ‘Manchester Arena bomber’ costume

North Yorkshire Council is set to replace Harrogate Theatre’s boilers by December after a fault was found.

The authority, which is the landlord of the building on Oxford Street, said a routine inspection found the aging facilities had to be replaced.

David Bown, chief executive of the theatre, told the Stray Ferret that an issue with the boiler was identified in the summer.

As a result, temporary heaters have been put in place for shows to continue.

The Stray Ferret asked North Yorkshire Council how much the replacement boiler will cost the authority and when it would be installed.

Kerry Metcalfe, North Yorkshire Council’s assistant director property, procurement and commercial, said:

“As the theatre’s landlords it is our duty to ensure the building has a safe heating system.

“During a routine service visit, the theatre’s boilers were found to be faulty, so they had to be capped off in line with Gas Safe standards.

“Due to the age of the existing boilers, there was no option but to fully replace them. Given the building’s age and the complex work involved, it raised the cost to a level where we had to put the replacement out to a competitive tender process.

“This process has now been completed and work to install the new boilers has begun. The work is due to be completed in December. The work has been budgeted for and final cost estimates are currently being compiled.

“Arrangements are in place for temporary heaters to be used to allow the theatre to function as normal and for shows to continue.”

The work is the latest to take place at the theatre in last few years.

Last year, a £1 million project to replace the 120-year-old roof at the building was completed. The works were initially meant to be completed in September 2021, but were delayed due to covid and labour shortages.

Read more:

• Image Gallery: Replacing Harrogate Theatre’s 120-year-old roof
• Malcolm Neesam History: Harrogate’s once lively street theatre scene

Police and firefighters were called to deal with a person trapped in barbed wire in Harrogate yesterday.

Harrogate firefighters were summoned to assist police at Ripon Way, which runs alongside the former gasworks site earmarked for the new Tesco supermarket, at 9.06pm.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service‘s incident report said:

“Harrogate crews responded to assist police with a person trapped in barbed wire.

“The person was released prior to fire service arrival with no action taken by crews.”

No details of how the person became trapped, the extent of any injuries or the precise location on Ripon Way, have been released.

Firefighters also dealt with a fire at premises on Scriven Road in Knaresborough at 3.06am this morning.

The incident report said a gas pipe had caught fire. It added:

“Fire extinguished using two breathing apparatus and one hose reel. Incident handed into care of gas board.”

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A Harrogate schoolboy receiving treatment for leukaemia is urging people to do two things that could save the lives of people like him. 

Harry Brown, 17, says that donating blood and signing up to the Anthony Nolan Stem Cell Register could make the difference between life and death for hundreds of patients, and is calling on anyone eligible to volunteer.  

Harry, a sixth former at St Aidan’s CE High School, was diagnosed with a type of blood cancer called acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) in July this year, and has been receiving intense chemotherapy and immunotherapy at the Teenage Cancer Trust unit at St James’s Hospital in Leeds.

He told the Stray Ferret: 

“Unfortunately, I still have some disease left, so will need a stem cell transplant to achieve a cure. This is providing we manage to find a suitable donor.  

“I therefore feel it is incredibly important that the Anthony Nolan Stem Cell Register is promoted to as wide an audience as possible as signing up is something very simple that anyone aged 16 to 30 can do but might just save the life of someone with blood cancer like me.  

“I also feel that the issue of blood donation requires increased awareness and promotion as I have received countless life-saving platelet and blood transfusions, which can only happen if people donate. 

“My message is that you can do something extraordinary – you can save a life by doing two simple things which can make such a huge difference to people like me.” 

Harry in the atrium of the Bexley Wing at St James’s Hospital in Leeds.

In the UK, there is a long-standing shortage of blood donors. According to NHS Blood and Transplant, 140,000 new donors are needed each year just to meet demand. 

But the rewards are incalculable – in just one hour, a blood donor can save three lives. 

Nine out of 10 people joining the Anthony Nolan Stem Cell Register who donate their stem cells do so through their blood within just a few hours; the other 10% donate by giving bone marrow. 

Read more:

• St Aidan’s students bring a taste of Italy to Great Yorkshire Show
• Son of Leeds United legend raises funds to beat his own cancer
• Blood testing to move from Harrogate to Knaresborough due to Sainsbury’s pharmacy closure

Before his diagnosis, Harry played the tuba with Tewit Youth Band and volunteered as a Young Leader with 16th Harrogate Scouts, as well as studying for A levels in English language and literature, geography and politics. But he is now taking a break from school while he concentrates on dealing with leukaemia, with the support of his family, friends, and St Aidan’s.

He says that illnesses such as ALL are not just “something that happens to other people”. He said: 

“I just felt a bit sick and off-colour, but within a week I’d been diagnosed with ALL. 

“Unfortunately, it can happen to anyone when you least expect it. I went from climbing up volcanoes on a school trip to Iceland one week to having an emergency procedure to remove my white blood cells the next. 

“Having a cancer diagnosis when you’re young is hard; it tips your life upside-down, and there’s no getting away from that. There were some days where I wondered whether I would have the energy to make it through the day, particularly when I was on daily chemotherapy. But it was people like my clinical nurse specialist and the youth support coordinator who picked me up and motivated me to keep fighting it, one cell at a time.  

“It also puts a whole new perspective on life and what is important, and it makes me more determined to see a future where nobody, especially children, has to experience the gruelling treatment of cancer.” 

To find out more about giving blood, visit the NHS Give Blood website, and for more information about how to donate stem cells, go to the Anthony Nolan website.